ELC590

SAMPLE PREPARATION OUTLINE

Students Name
Faculty / Group
Lecturers Name

:
:
:

Title
: PANIC ATTACKS
Organisational Pattern: Topical order
Visual Aid
:
General Purpose
: To inform
Specific Purpose
: To inform my audience about the nature, extent, and symptoms of panic
attacks.
Central Idea
: Panic attacks are serious medical conditions whose fearful symptoms
affect millions of people.
Introduction
I.
II.

III.
IV.

I cant breathe, my arms are tingling, Im really dizzy, and it feels as if my heart is
about to fly out of my chest.
When this happened to me three years ago at an outdoor concert, I was really
frightened.
A. At the time, I had no idea what was going on.
B. My doctor told me later that I had experienced a panic attack.
I have learned a lot about my condition during the past three years, and I did
additional research for this speech.
Today I would like to inform you about the nature of panic attacks, the people
affected most often by them, and the options for treatment.

(Transition: Lets start with the nature of panic attacks.)

Body
I.

Panic attacks are a severe medical condition with a number of physical and mental
symptoms.
A. As defined by the National Institute of Mental Health, panic attacks involve
unexpected and repeated episodes of intense fear accompanied by physical
symptoms.
1. The attacks usually come out of nowhere and strike when least
expected.
2. Their length can vary from a few minutes to several hours.

B. There are a number of symptoms common to most panic attacks.

1. Physical symptoms include a pounding heart, shortness of
breath, lightheadedness, and numbness or tingling sensations in
the arms and legs.
2. Mental symptoms include acute fear, a sense of disaster or
helplessness, and a feeling of being detached from ones own
body.

(Transition: Now that you know something about the nature of panic attacks, lets look at how
widespread they are.)
II.

Panic attacks affect millions of people.

A. According to the American Psychiatric Association, 2.5 million Americans suffer
from panic attacks.
B. Some groups have higher incidence of panic attacks than do other groups.
1. The National Institute of Mental Health reports that panic attacks
strike women twice as often as men.
2. Half the people who suffer from panic attacks develop symptoms
before the age of 24.

(Transition: Given the severity of panic attacks, Im sure you are wondering how they can be
treated.)
III.

There are two major options for treating panic attacks.

A. One option is medication.
1. Antidepressants are the most frequently prescribed medication for
panic attacks.
2. They rearrange the brains chemical levels so as to get rid of
unwanted fear responses.
B. Another option is cognitive-behavioral therapy.
1.
This therapy involves techniques that help people with panic
attacks gain control of their symptoms and feelings.
a.
Some techniques involve breathing exercises.
b.
Other techniques target thought patterns that can trigger
panic attacks.
2.

According to Dr. David Carbonell, author of the Panic Attacks

Workbook, cognitive-behavioral therapy can be highly effective.

Conclusion
I.
II.
III.
IV.

As we have seen, panic attacks affect millions of people.

Fortunately, there are treatment options to help prevent panic attacks and to deal
with them when they occur.
In my case, the combination of medication and cognitive-behavioral therapy has
been extremely helpful.
I dont know if I will ever be completely free of panic attacks, but at least I understand
now what they are and what I can do about them.

Bibliography
American Psychiatric Association. (n.d.). Panic Disorder. Retrieved January 27, 2015, from
http://www.psychiatry.org/panic-disorder
Carbonell, D. (2004). Panic Attacks Workbook: A guided Program for Breaking the Panic Cycle.
Berkeley, CA: Ulysses Press.
Leskin, G. A., & Sheikh, J. I. (2004, Jan 1). Gender Differences in Panic Disorders. Psychiatric Times.
Retrieved March 15, 2015, from http://www.psychiatrictimes.com/articles/gender-differences-panicdisorder
National Institute of Mental Health. (2005, February 2) Panic Disorder. Retrieved September 26, 2005,
from www.nimh.nih.gov/Health Information/panicmenu.cfm
Swede, A., Shirley, P., and Seymour, J. (2001). The Panic Attack Recovery Book. New York: New
American Library.
Wilkinson, D. (2005, June, 5). Anxiety Disorder: Living on a Thin Line. The New York Times. Retrieved
May 8, 2015 from http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/05/health/womenshealth/anxiety-disorders-livingon-a-thin-line.html?_r=0